council tax benefit

[jonnythehorse]

im in the process of making a claim for council tax benefit and they have given me a list of things they want so they can sort out the claim, now the thing is they want to see bank statements, now there is stuff that goes out of there that is of a personal nature and i dont want people seeing what i get up to, do i really have to give them bank statements ?

[Emma1973]

i dont want people seeing what i get up to

,

 

Yes, you do have to show them, CTB is a means-tested benefit, it depends on your income and savings, if you have more than the state says would entitle you to CTB then you dont get it. And you have to prove you are entitled to it.

The only reason I can see for refusing to show bank statement is that your income and savings is too high to get benefits!

[andydd]

im in the process of making a claim for council tax benefit and they have given me a list of things they want so they can sort out the claim, now the thing is they want to see bank statements, now there is stuff that goes out of there that is of a personal nature and i dont want people seeing what i get up to, do i really have to give them bank statements ?

 

Alas it would appear so, they are nosey buggers too, my statement had reference to another account so they wanted all these details, in total I have 5 accounts, most with 1p in or something.

 

I agree there could be some personal details on there, but there is not much you can do except you are a bit flexible over which month(s) you actually show.

[rickyd]

They are bound by the DPA just like anyone else so your personal information can't be used unless its relevant to the process they're following.

 

Just remember that the more obstructive you are, you risk alienating them and you need them on your side. If you tell them what the need to know and are entitled, you will get the benefit.

 

Of course they'll need to check all your statements otherwise we'd all show them the ones with low balances and keep the others secret.

[andydd]

They are bound by the DPA just like anyone else so your personal information can't be used unless its relevant to the process they're following.

 

Just remember that the more obstructive you are, you risk alienating them and you need them on your side. If you tell them what the need to know and are entitled, you will get the benefit.

 

Of course they'll need to check all your statements otherwise we'd all show them the ones with low balances and keep the others secret.

 

I doubt the DPA stops some of the staff having a quick nose and giggle at items or stores you may have bought stuff from that you may wish to keep private, I think this is what the OP is refering to.

[antone]

I doubt the DPA stops some of the staff having a quick nose and giggle at items or stores you may have bought stuff from that you may wish to keep private, I think this is what the OP is refering to.

 

I guess this must happen, but as a general rule benefit processing staff see lots of claims and evidence. They've seen most things before, and in any case don't have enough time to spend it giggling immaturely over irrelevant details in bank statements.

[ErikaPNP]

I don't doubt that there are a proportion of people who would have a "nose". Nosey people are in all walks of life but to be perfectly honest, especially in the current climate with benefit claims being through the roof I sincerly doubt they would have the time to spare to scrutinise what you have spent your cash on and have a good laugh about it.

 

They need to know what you have coming in so as they can determine your entitlement. When you wish to make a claim from the state you must provide the information they require to determine your claim. If you fail to provide the information, they cannot make an award of benefit.

 

If no-one was obliged to put forth this information, the budget would be dry. Legislation must be in place to prevent awards being made to people who are not entitled to it.

 

Requesting information in order to determine your claim isn't nosey. They are following legislation they must work within the parametres of, and don't have much choice but to ask for it. If no-one had to provide proof of income, this would allow every tom dick and harry to be awarded benefit, even the rich and famous. There isn't an endless supply of cash in the pot, contrary to popular belief.

[rickyd]

andydd - you're probably right in thinking this, I'm sure it must happen in the same way that people who process photographs must get some fabulous pictures to look at during their work. The point I was making was that they risk losing their job or worse if they pass the details on to a third party and as antone and erikapnp have said they'll have seen worse and don't have time to linger on the details

[kinkyklee]

nothing to do with them what your money goes on and if you like buying stange thing(if thats what your stating) then so what...

take the statements in hold head high and dont let them intimidate you..

if its that you really earn more than you are saying to them then you will just have to hope for the best with regards to your claim